45 Years Of Larson Yes I have been in business for 45 years and we are not stopping now. Sure I could retire but as my father always said "Don't retire, retread". I do wonder how I got to where I am now. But then, I don't. I mean I grew up with a printing press in the family basement.  I born to be in printing, advertising, marketing and it's been one hell of a ride. I tried not to be an ad man. With a Double Major Biology/Philosophy from Northland College you can see I was really educated for going into marketing. My marketing degrees came later From University of Wisconsin Madison, thank you. From working as a pressman on a 1 Color Solna 125, a 2 color Heidelberg Speedmaster and yes a little gray Multilith 1250 to doing tts coding for a VIP Typesetter. Building one of the largest dry transfer companies in Chicago to buying one of the first 36" wide Lasermaster ink jet printers. Working on projects with and for companies such as  Leo Burnett & J Walter Thompson, Field Container & FCL Graphics to Binks Mfg & Simmons Beds, Freeman Decorating, Hall Erickson & Brightline, Hollister and Molex. Enesco & Roman, Heidelberg USA & Graphtec Digital Solutions . From 1 man to fortune 500 businesses. Business To Business Lead Generation Telemarketing Target Marketing Making Good Companies Great and Great Companies Even Better 435 Bennett Road, Elk Grove Village IL This was the start 5000 square feet. My father moved his design company out of the basement and had the front 3500 and I took the back 2500.    3 printing presses, paper cutter, a Mergenthaler VIP, an  18' Consolidated Camera. 1 shift to 2 shifts. A second VIP and a new Borrowdale process camera.  Growing by over 25% a year by 1979 we had taken a 250K company to over hitting over a million in sales and it was time to move. If you have never grown at double digits or hit 1 Million in sales let me tell you its rush.  175 Gordon Street, Elk Grove Village IL We bought the 175 Gordon building in 1986 from one of our customers, NCL Graphics which gave us the room we needed to grow and expand. More equipment such as a $600K Berthhold Typesetting System an Linotype 330L. With 46 employees we where on fire. It was here we created the "Center For Creative Arts". Using the Downtown Chicago model of having independent talent in one location we brought in highly specialized independent talent all to one address. Typesetting, photostats, dry transfers, design, air brushing , illustration, color copies, trade show and pop displays. Bringing together 14 different creatives all under one roof. 1550 Spring Road Oak Brook IL Thank you Apple. The Mac changed everything. Pricing went down. Quality went down and we got caught flatfooted. Typography basically disappeared from the face to the earth in 3 short hard years. Our 3 largest accounts got bought out and/or moved out of the Chicago area and the United States went into a "little" recession. So I moved to smaller digs. I will spare you the details but with my father, who was the creative genius, and he really was a genius, retired because of a minor stoke, it was time to regroup and rethink company direction. As this was all happening I got a call from a past salesman who use to work for me. Many of you have heard the story but, Tom was working for a website design company and was maybe one paycheck from getting the rubber key when he called me up and asked if I would make some cold telemarketing calls for him.  Now he was the kind of guy who could sell ice to an Eskimo but he was NOT a cold call guy. So we worked out a deal. I made some calls and I set him up with some appointments. He closed them and... his boss found out, calls me up and said "I want to hire you, you're great." Upon which I said I have a company and I'm not looking for a job. Jim countered, ok I want hire your company. And in 1 week I changed from being what you might call a 2 bit graphic arts company into a telemarketing company. 678 N. Eagle Lane Palatine IL The move to our present configuration came when gas hit $3.00 a gallon in 2006. I did not need to do a 30 mile round trip drive down to Oak Brook when I could do a 30 foot commute to a spare room in the house. A step back? Hardly. It has allowed me to attract some of the finest talent in the country. IL, MN, TX, LA, FL, CT, NE, AZ. A new direction a new way of doing business more efficiently. Moving back into full milt-channel marketing we added direct mail and email marketing, content development, blogging and enhanced social media marketing but the thing that makes it all work, the glue to our success is still personalized prospecting by a real live person. No auto dialer. No recorded message. No bull pen. But 1 person handing your account so they get to know you, your company and can represent you. 45 years and still running So whats next? Growth? Perhaps but seriously, I enjoy being the big fish in a little pond.   I keep looking, testing, trying new things. The tools might be different but the rules remain the same. If you know how things work, it works. People buy from people they know and trust. Additionally I have partnered with Estimator Cloud a complete cloud based estimation system for Print, Sign, Large Format and Display companies. Why? It does what is suppose to do. No BS. It is easy to use. And it has a fast set up in 1 to 2 days. Give me a call and I'll get you a demo, I don't care if you are using a different system. Try it, you will like it. As for my core company, I'm not looking to be the kind of guy everyone wants to use for their marketing and lead generation. But for the discerning person and company, the one with the hunger and the grit who wants to grow faster at or faster than 4 times the GNP, I'll sit down and have a cup of coffee. Sadly right now a virtual cup of coffee. If you like my way, the Larson way, let's do some business and make some money. We Keep Getting Better To Make Good Business Great and Great Businesses Even Better!

2020 Best of Palatine Award in the Merchandising & Marketing Consultants

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Larson & Associates Receives  category PALATINE March 7, 2020 -- Larson & Assoc has been selected for the 2020 Best of Palatine Award in the Merchandising & Marketing Consultants category by the Palatine Award Program. Each year, the Palatine Award Program identifies companies that we believe have achieved exceptional marketing success in their local community and business category. These are local companies that enhance the positive image of small business through service to their customers and our community. These exceptional companies help make the Palatine area a great place to live, work and play. Various sources of information were gathered and analyzed to choose the winners in each category. The 2020 Palatine Award Program focuses on quality, not quantity. Winners are determined based on the information gathered both internally by the Palatine Award Program and data provided by third parties. About Palatine Award Program The Palatine Award Program is an annual awards program honoring the achievements and accomplishments of local businesses throughout the Palatine area. Recognition is given to those companies that have shown the ability to use their best practices and implemented programs to generate competitive advantages and long-term value. The Palatine Award Program was established to recognize the best of local businesses in our community. Our organization works exclusively with local business owners, trade groups, professional associations and other business advertising and marketing groups. Our mission is to recognize the small business community's contributions to the U.S. economy. Here is a quick view of some of our services Appointment Setting Lead Generation Email Blasts Direct Mail Content Development Blog Writing Niche Development Lists development Inside Sales Work house accounts, dormant accounts, or small accounts; freeing up your strong sales people to be out on appointments! Data Cleansing Customer Surveys Association Marketing Trade Show Marketing Membership Drives Renewal Calls Trade Show Registrations Prospecting for exhibitors or sponsors Seminar Marketing Webinars YouTube Virtual Meetings Streaming videos Setting up 1on1 virtual meetings Enhanced Social Media Marketing For a free pdf copy of our Marketing Planning Guide or the Larson 52 Weeks of Trade Show Planning just email to howard@larsonassociates.ws and I'll email it out to you. Then I can sit down and go over how you could be making 4 times the GNP or get you on the path to sales doubling! Even more if your an under 500K company and have the grit and determination. Is It Time To Make Your Move? Call 847-991-1294 Making Good Businesses Great and Great Businesses Even Better Larson & Associates 678 N Eagle Lane    Suite 201 Palatine IL 60067 847-991-1294 howard@larsonassociates.ws

Got The Coronavirus Blues? It's not over till it's over! People, companies still need to buy things. So why not buy them from you. Larson & Associates can and will get you out in front of the people you need to have see you and know your open for business you so they can buy. Hide and they can't find you! So let Larson & Associates shout it out WE ARE HERE!  Are you ready to market to the buyers regardless of the what is happening this year? We are! Yes, this market place is one if the most difficult and crucial opportunities to interact with buyers and potential buyers – so whats your plan? When it comes to marketing, you need something powerful, fast and inspiring,  More then ever you need to convey your message quickly and efficiently. Larson & Associates has years of experience working through disasters. Remember after 911 or the during the SARS virus when people were afraid? We have been here before so we have opened up our playbook and took out our notes on how we worked with our clients after those disasters. You can still bring in sales and meet with buyers leaving a positive impression and a memorable experience.  Let us bring your marketing theme to life and reinforce your branding through marketing and virtual tools. We can assemble an audience or buyers to hear a presentation which puts your product on the buyer’s radar screen. Our professional presenters deliver YOUR message in an engaging manner in order to make the presentation memorable. We can give your staff an opportunity to highlight your company’s selling points. From virtual meetings to streaming videos Larson & Associates has done it before and we are doing it again! Here is a quick view of some of our services Appointment Setting Lead Generation Email Blasts Direct Mail Content Development Blog Writing Niche Development Lists development Inside Sales Work house accounts, dormant accounts, or small accounts; freeing up your strong sales people to be out on appointments! Data Cleansing Customer Surveys Association Marketing Trade Show Marketing Membership Drives Renewal Calls Trade Show Registrations Prospecting for exhibitors or sponsors Seminar Marketing Webinars YouTube Virtual Meetings Streaming videos Setting up 1on1 virtual meetings Enhanced Social Media Marketing For the Larson Marketing Planning Guide: Yes, for a free pdf or word doc copy of our Marketing Planning Guide  just email to howard@larsonassociates.ws and I'll email it out to you. Then I can sit down with you and show you how you could be making 50% more in sales! Even more if your an under 500K company and have the grit. This year we are getting right down in the virtual world with you to keep your sales funnel filled with high quality buyers, you or your sales staff set up with appointments.   We Make Good Companies Great And Great Companies Even Better